If you are going to look
at these files more than once, please download them onto your computer
to save the bandwidth of
the website.(To open PDF files you will need to have a current copy of Adobe
Reader)

Summary of Practices Handout: This
is a 7-page file designed for your personal use, as well as for meditation retreats, classes, and
one-to-one coaching sessions. As the name implies, it is a summary of
the basic practices of the tradition. The first page is the most
important, as it outlines all of the practices in bullet point format.

Summary of Practices: This paper is an
expanded explanation of the 7-page Summary of Practices paper, and
directly follows the outline on the first or summary page of that
handout. The purpose of this longer paper is to complement meditation
retreats, classes, and one-to-one coaching sessions.

Self-study Guide: This is a 23-page
outline of articles, books, and videos that you may want to review. It
includes suggestions on tracking your progress, as well as information
about coaching in the principles and practices.

Self-Awareness Assessment: This
is a Self-Awareness Assessment outline. Our approach to teaching and
training at Abhyasa Ashram is one of coaching in one-to-one or small
group sessions (satsang). The purpose of coaching sessions on the
Self-Assessment outline is to help you learn how to self assess. The
Self-Assessment is truly intended to be an assessment by yourself of
yourself. The coach is not here to analyze you or diagnose you like a
typical medical or psychological assessment might be done. It is your
personal exploration of your own current state of life and being. The
coach has done this before and is here to facilitate your own
introspection and observation. The items of self-awareness listed below
are from the perspective of yoga as seen through the tradition. By
increasing self-awareness one gradually comes to see that these are not
who we really are, which leads to the realization of the witness of
these, the true Self, Atman.

The
Path: This paper was written by Swami Jnaneshvara in 1997 as an aid
to the Residential Program at Swami Rama's Ashram, Rishikesh, India. It
was designed to help program participants better know what to look for
when studying Swami Rama's descriptions of the path to enlightenment,
which he continually said was easy and systematic, but that he also
often said few understood or were doing. If one diligently pursues the
wisdom Swami Rama has shared, maybe he or she can actually understand
and do what he suggested for so many years. And maybe, just maybe, the
aspirant will find that he has told the truth--that the path is both
systematic and easy.
(PDF; 49 pages; 202 kb) (Spanish
translation)

Real Yoga Will Not Wreck Your
Body: The New York Times published an article on January 5, 2012
entitled “How Yoga Can Wreck Your Body”. This article has since spread
like wildfire throughout internet. I am writing comments below to
strongly refute much, if not most of what William J. Broad (the author)
has said. I have copied the original article here, and then inserted
comments within the body of that article. I have broken some of the
original paragraphs so that I can easily comment on individual sentences
where appropriate. Other than that, I have not changed Broad’s article
in any way; it is exactly as I copied it from the New York Times
website. My comments are indented in a way that it should be clear which
parts are the original article (not indented) and which are my comments
(indented with italics).
(PDF; 16 pages; 208 kb)

Vedic
Psychology for the Ills of Human Civilization: This paper was
presented by Swami Jnaneshvara at The Clash of Civilizations Symposium
of the World Association of Vedic Studies Conference of 2004. The clash
of civilizations begins with the clash of the contents of the individual
mind. If we want to do something about the course of civilizations, it
is imperative that we do something about the deep-seated clash of
attractions, aversions, and fears, which lurk in the individual and
collective unconscious. Modern psychology explores the mind and
personality to improve upon who we are. The psychology of the ancient
sages explores the mind and personality to discover who we are not, but
have mistakenly come to believe we are.
(PDF; 8 pages; 42 kb)

Swami Rama

Swami
Rama Teachings booklet: This file is a booklet on the teachings of
Swami Rama. Originally published in printed and bound format, the
booklet is entitled Understanding and Practicing the Teachings of Swami
Rama. It was created by Swami Jnaneshvara in 1997 after having led six
one-month residential training programs at Swami Rama's Ashram in
Rishikesh, India, at the instruction of Swami Rama. Although the program
has not been available at the ashram for several years, many people
continue to find the information in this booklet useful to their studies
and practices of meditation and contemplation.
(PDF; 39 pages; 257 kb)

Enlightenment Without God
- Mandukya Upanishad: Swami Rama wrote a book entitled
"Enlightenment Without God," which is a most profound
discussion of the Mandukya Upanishad (it is not "anti" God).
The entire subject of that text is Om Mantra. This text summarizes the
highest insights and practices, and provides a framework for the whole
process of meditation and contemplation. Someone has emailed me a PDF
copy of this book, which has been out of print since 1988. This book is
extremely useful for the sincere aspirant seeking the deepest of
insights, and is worthy of reading many times. (alternate
version)
(PDF; 75 PDF pages; 119 text pages; 4.17 mb)

Swami
Rama Demo and Interview with Probe Magazine- 1973: This is a June 1973
magazine cover story in Probe the Unknown magazine. The article is
entitled Proving the Power of Meditation. Swami Rama makes some amazing
demonstrations of self-regulation, while at the same time explaining
that he is not trying to be a magician, but wanted to show that one can
control one's bodily functions, including the so-called involuntary
muscles. Such demonstrations were done not only for this magazine, but
also many others, including research scientists.
(PDF; 7 pages; 903 kb)

Science Year - The World
Book Science Annual - 1974: Research on Swami Rama published in the
1974 Science Year of The World Book Science Annual. Report "Ins and Outs
of Mind-Body Energy by Elmer and Alyce Green. Describes Swami Rama
moving an object with his mind, and creating a photo image with energy
through his hand. (large file; over 7mb)

Beyond Biofeedback - on
Swami Rama: Describes scientific research done on Swami Rama in the
voluntary controls program at Menninger Foundation in Kansas. The
research included moving of objects with only mind, regulating mind at
will on eeg, changing temperatures, significantly changing heart rate
with mind alone, and stopping blood flow in the heart.

Miscellaneous

Handout of "Circles" Chart: This
image is used in many places on the website and is a very useful tool
for conversations and classes. If you want a large version you can take
it to many photo copy stores and have a large version made. One standard
size (in US) is three feet wide.

Yoga Sutras

Yoga
Sutras of Patanjali - Interpretive Translation: This is an
interpretive translation of the Yoga Sutra, expanding the number of
English words, so as to allow the practical instructions to be more
clear. For example, sutra 1.2 defines Yoga with some 25 English words,
rather than only four Sanskrit words. By providing, expanded,
interpretive translations, the practical meaning of the suggestions more
easily comes through. The individual transliterated Sanskrit words also
have a large number of English translations, so as to give a more
thorough understanding.
(PDF; 60 pages; 264 kb)

Yoga
Sutras - Narrative Translation: The purpose of this narrative
translation is to make it easier to get an overview of the entire Yoga
Sutra. By clustering the 196 sutras together into 39 groups, and
presenting them in paragraph format, most readers can study this in a
familiar way that is more like the many other books or papers we have
studied. As you come to understand the Yoga Sutra in this way, your
further studies of more detailed commentaries and Sanskrit translations
might come more smoothly, especially when done in conjunction with oral
guidance and personal practices of meditation.
(PDF; 12 pages; 67 kb)

Yoga
Sutras of Patanjali - Questions: These questions and answers serve
as an enjoyable way to review the principles and practices of the Yoga
Sutras of Patanjali. Each question includes a reference to the sutra
that answers the question. The questions are designed to focus on the
practical application of the teachings. This page can also be used
effectively for group discussions.
(PDF; 5 pages; 41 kb)

Yoga
Sutras - Summary: This is a table, which outlines all 196 of the
Yoga Sutras in 39 chapters. It will print on two pages, which can be
taped together, allowing you to view the entirety of the Yoga Sutras on
a single page. For our local classes,
we have that single large page photocopied onto 11" x 17"
pages and laminated so that we can see the "big picture" in
one glance. It is then quite easy to move around in the discussions
during the class.
(PDF; 2 pages; 20 kb)

Yoga Sutras Basics
Summary of the first five sutras of the Yoga Sutras, which summarize the
entire message of the Yoga Sutras. (2 pages)

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This site is devoted to
presenting the ancient Self-Realization path of
the Tradition of the Himalayan masters
in simple, understandable and beneficial ways, while not compromising
quality or depth. The goal of our sadhana or practices is the highest
Joy that comes from the Realization in direct experience of the
center of consciousness, the Self, the Atman or Purusha, which is
one and the same with the Absolute Reality.
This Self-Realization comes through Yoga meditation of the Yoga
Sutras, the contemplative insight of Advaita Vedanta, and the
intense devotion of Samaya Sri Vidya Tantra, the three of which
complement one another like fingers on a hand.
We employ the classical approaches of Raja, Jnana, Karma, and Bhakti
Yoga, as well as Hatha, Kriya, Kundalini, Laya, Mantra, Nada, Siddha,
and Tantra Yoga. Meditation, contemplation, mantra and prayer
finally converge into a unified force directed towards the final
stage, piercing the pearl of wisdom called bindu, leading to the
Absolute.